Do you think there is little in common between an octopus and a human being? The latest studies on these invertebrates reveal some amazing similarities. Here are four:
They handle tools
In 2009, the speciesAmphioctopus marginatusfrom Indonesia joined the list of animals capable of handling tools. As stated in a study published in the journalCurrent Biology, This octopus usually collects the coconut shells that fall to the bottom of the sea, transport them and store them in a well hidden place to be able to use them as a defensive shield when circumstances require it.
They are smarter than hunger
To measure the intelligence of octopuses, scientists resort to experiments in which they evaluate mainly two parameters: their ability to learn and their memory. In this way they have discovered that they can learn to distinguish geometric shapes (squares, rectangles, circles …), open cans with screw caps and go through complicated mazes. As if this were not enough, they also learn by observing their peers, a characteristic that was believed to be limited to some mammals and humans. And as neurobiologist Benny Hochner demonstrated in an experiment, tThey have a short-term memory circuit and a long-term memory circuit. Not surprisingly, octopuses have half a million neurons organized in a complex network of lobes, just like the human brain.
Bipedal floors
In 2008, twenty-four European marine centers launched a study in which they tried to discover if octopuses were “eight-foot-tall” and handled all their legs equally or if, on the contrary, they had a favorite limb. And what they discovered was that they use two of their arms to walk on the seabed, while with the six they explore and investigate the objects within their reach, including the Lego pieces and the Rubik’s cubes that the scientists offered them in the experiment. . That implies that,When an octopus needs to run, it raises six limbs and uses the other two to flee at full speed..
Not just sex
For decades, scientists have viewed octopuses as lonely and unromantic beings in their sex lives. However, a recent University of California study reveals that male octopuses do not mate with the first female that crosses their path. In fact,octopods tend to hang around the “chosen girl” for several days, adorning themselves with colorful body patterns on her skin, keep rivals at a distance, and even lovingly shake a leg of their partner once they manage to conquer it.
